Use of Shredded Leaf Mulch Improves Potatoes Grown for Local and Organic Markets

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1 Cooperative Extension njaes.rutgers.edu Martin Hall, Room 327 Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey 88 Lipman Drive New Brunswick, NJ Fax: Use of Shredded Leaf Mulch Improves Potatoes Grown for Local and Organic Markets Mel Henninger, David L. Lee, Jack Rabin and Kate L. Brown In this field demonstration, we compared three growing practices under organic conditions. We found that on Coastal Plain soils under organic production, application of shredded leaf mulch resulted in yields comparable to conventional bare ground practice and was superior to other organic methods with increased percentages of desirable marketable grades and fewer culls. Potato Growing Practices Potatoes were grown using four production methods (organic bare ground, black plastic mulch, leaf mulch and conventional bare ground). The field plots were replicated four times (16 field plots 24-ft by 100-ft in randomized complete blocks). The organic fields were transitioned in 2003 and received USDA NOP Organic Certification in foot grass buffers separated organic and adjacent conventional fields. Table 1 presents the cultural practices and field operations by date. Seed pieces of six varieties were cut and suberized for five days at 55oF and 95% relative humidity, after which they were returned to 40oF storage until planting on April 25. No other seed piece treatments were applied. Poultry manure without litter was pre-plant incorporated at 9,600 lb per acre on the organic fields. The manure tested 1.27% total nitrogen, supplying about 120 lb N per acre. This was roughly equivalent to the conventional fields that received 800 lb/a of pre-plant. The conventional fields received an additional 100 lb N per acre with 217 lb/a of urea. Partial support from: and

2 Table 1. Dates and potato growing practices performed for four different production methods. Date Bare Soil, Conventional Leaf Mulch, Organic Black Plastic/Leaf Mulch, Organic 4/ lb/a of , 120 lb N/a, Pre plant, disk in Bare Soil, Organic 9,600 lb/a solid poultry manure (without litter), tested 1.27% total N, ~120 lb N/a, Preplant, disk in 4/24 Lay plastic mulch 4/25 Planting, 36-in rows by 9-in row spacing Note: double row on plastic 4/25 Platinum 8 oz./a + Ridomil Gold 42 fl. oz/1,000 row ft. sprayed over seed-pieces at covering 5/0l Prowl 2 pt/a + Metribuzin 75DF 5.7 oz./a 5/07 No emergence breaking 5/ lb/a of Urea, 100 lb N/a, cultivate in, Emergence breaking under bare soils Drag-off with spike tooth harrow No emergence breaking Cultivate, drag-off, hill Spread Leaf mulch Emergence breaking under plastic mulch Drag-off with spike tooth harrow No emergence breaking Cultivate row middles Cultivate and drag-off 5/22 Cultivate 5/28 Cultivate, Spread leaf mulch 5/30 Spread Leaf mulch 6/02 Cultivate 6/05 Entrust 3 oz./a plus PyGanic 5.0 EC 1 pt./a 6/09 Hill cultivation, Applied Metribuzin 5.7 oz./a + Dual 1.6 pts./a Hill cultivation 6/12 Entrust 3 oz./a plus PyGanic 5.0 EC 1 pt./a 6/16 Foliar spray of Provado 3.75 oz./a 6/17 Set up drip irrigation. Run as needed for the season, ~7 times, numerous insect hole repairs 6/17 Spread addl. Leaf mulch + Hand weeded Cultivate, Hand weeded 6/19 PyGanic 5.0 EC 1 pt./a 6/25 Entrust 3 oz./a plus PyGanic 5.0 EC 1 pt./a 7/1 PyGanic 5.0 EC 1 pt./a, Hand weeded 7/10 PyGanic 5.0 EC 1 pt./a, Hand weeded 7/11 Hand weeded 7/16 PyGanic 5.0 EC 1 pt./a, Hand weeded 7/24 Foliar spray 6 fl. oz./a + 6 fl. oz./a 8/06 Harvested Washed Graded 8/27-28 Harvested Washed Graded

3 Municipal-collected shade tree leaves were run through a manure spreader then reloaded and spread about 3-inches deep over breaking potato fields on May 15. Another mulching took place two weeks later on May 30. These provided the generally accepted practice of a 6-inch deep leaf layer, about 40,000 lb per acre dry weight. Leaves were mulched between the rows of plastic mulch on May 28. Additional mulching on June 17 filled gaps to suppress weeds. Pest Management High insect pest pressure in the organic fields required a total of 10 insecticide applications compared to three applications on conventional fields (Table 1). PyGanic was effective against potato leafhopper, however there was a continuous reintroduction of leafhoppers from neighboring fields. Seven applications of PyGanic were made at $46/a. Overwinter Colorado potato beetle adults were removed by hand until the 1 st generation larvae hatched. Then three applications of Entrust at $65/a provided excellent control of small Colorado potato beetle larvae. Insect control in the conventional bare ground fields was effective with three applications. Potato growing conditions were generally favorable during the season without Late Blight risks. No fungicides were applied. Marketable Yield Results Chart 1 presents the average marketable yields by production method. Marketable yields were determined by grading for size, shape, knobs and misshapen, as well as internal and external defects. Total yields, and the percentage of marketable yields to total yields by variety and grade are not shown, but available from the authors. Marketable yields averaged across all six varieties were highest on conventional bare ground. However, the marketable yields of three varieties, Blazer Russet, King Harry, and Superior grown under organic leaf mulch were not different from the yields produced on conventional bare ground, as shown for each variety in Table 2. The marketable yields of Dark Red Norland, Katahdin, and Yukon Gold under leaf mulch were significantly less than their conventional bare ground yields.

4 Table 2. Marketable yields of six potato varieties under leaf mulch, plastic mulch, and bare soil. Variety Average Marketable Yields in cwt./a by Production Method Organic Bare Ground Organic Black Plastic Organic Leaf Mulch Conventional Bare Ground King Harry 169 (b) (a) 457 (a) Superior 171 (b) (a) 378 (a) Blazer Russet 159 (b) (a) 376 (a) Dark Red Norland 126 (c) (b) 387 (a) Katahdin 133 (c) (b) 369 (a) Yukon Gold 115 (c) (b) 367 (a) Mean yields for each variety across a row sharing a common letter are not significantly different at p < Do not use mean separation letters to compare yields by production method in the columns. Mean yields under black plastic were not separated. Organic bare ground production for all varieties resulted in the lowest marketable yields, smaller marketable grade sizes, and the lowest percentages of marketable yields to total yields. In the organic bare ground fields, weed competition, hopper burn and vine decline led to earlier vine dieback and earlier maturity. They were harvested three weeks earlier than the other fields. In this demonstration, the yields produced under black plastic were lower than leaf mulch and did not show any benefit. With our digger, the plastic mulch interfered with mechanical harvest. Some potatoes set outside the edges of the plastic leading to recovery losses and damaged tubers. Notably, there were significantly fewer culls harvested under the leaf mulch in comparison with bare ground methods. Table 3 compares the mean percentage of cull potatoes by weight across all varieties and methods harvested. All varieties except Superior had significantly less culls under leaf mulch compared to bare ground (data not shown). Table 3. Mean percent of cull potatoes by weight from all varieties harvested from four production practices. Production Method Mean Percent Culls Significant at p<0.05 Organic Leaf Mulch 1.5 a Organic Black Plastic 3.4 b Organic Bare Ground 4.4 b Conventional Bare Ground 7.8 c Percent cull potatoes from practices sharing a common letter are not significantly different at p < 0.05 using Tukey s HSD. Varieties Among varieties in this demonstration, Dark Red Norland produces nice smooth red tubers, but susceptibility to air pollution injury limits its yield. King Harry (Cornell release, 2006) demonstrated high resistance to leafhopper burn. The variety is promoted as well suited for organic producers with limited insecticide control options. While leafhopper resistance is valuable for both conventional and organic growers, and

5 contributed to the high marketable yields, it has less desirable culinary qualities compared with other fresh market varieties. Yukon Gold is the standard specialty potato in NJ. It has excellent boiling and baking quality with acceptable yield and size. It is susceptible to hollow heart (sometime approaching 15-50%), silver scurf, and scab, which are unacceptable in the market. Blazer Russet is an early medium sized russet for the table. Marketable yields vary, but in general are not better than Superior. The tuber appearance is good, with some misshapen and d- bell tubers. Superior is the standard early fresh market white skin, white flesh variety. It is resistant to common scab, but very susceptible to pink rot. It has very few internal defects. The tuber appearance is good when dug early, but after Superior matures the skin turns darker and more netted. Superior yields very well when grown in soil that has not had potatoes or tomatoes grown for 10-years. Direct retail or chef customers want skin and flesh colors of red, blue, purple and yellow. There are many specialty varieties. Adirondack Blue is one potential example. Adirondack Blue yields well, and has dark blue/purple tubers with equally nice internal purple flesh color. French Fingerling and Austrian Crescent are potential fingerling examples, but show internal heat necrosis. French Fingerling has a deep yellow flesh with some tubers having red flecking. Considerations The reduced cull tubers grown under leaf mulch were unexpected. In particular, Blazer Russet and King Harry showed improved tuber appearance under leaf mulch; with fewer knobs and misshapen tubers. This was likely due to moderation of soil temperatures under the leaf cover. Organic growers on bare ground will produce much lower yields compared to conventional production. Adding surface applied leaf mulch raised yields and quality closer to conventional yields; putting growers back in the ball game while adopting a soil health building strategy. Yields for three varieties under leaf mulch did not differ from conventional, even though they received 100 lb/a less nitrogen. There were no advantages to using black plastic mulch under these field conditions, even though it led to oneweek earlier emergence. Leaf mulch alone produced better yields and quality. While the plastic mulch passed over the digger, it interfered with tuber recovery. A typical digger would have fewer problems. Small farmers who hand harvest would not experience these problems. Warmer temperatures under black plastic may negatively impact yields and tuber quality on coastal plain soils compared to cooler regions.

6 While the conventional bare soil fields received increased tillage and herbicides, the labor of spreading leaf mulch and hand labor associated with using organic methods increased costs. Hand removal of overwinter adult Colorado potato beetles entering the fields, and hand pulling weeds added to costs. Increased costs may be worth the expense if you have markets willing pay $1 to $3 per pound. The costs must strike a balance with harder to quantify long-term returns to building soil productivity. Leaf mulch incorporation takes place at the end of the growing season, along with the crop residues, to benefit future soil quality and organic matter. Surface leaf mulch permits a cash crop to be produced instead of fallowing. However, leaf mulch soil nutrient benefits do not aid the current crop. Unlike other crops, potato requires a high percentage of its nutrition early in development. The leaf mulch layer benefits current season weed suppression; helps retain root zone soil moisture and moderates soil temperatures. For sufficient nitrogen availability, organic potatoes should be produced under long rotations with legume cover crops and manure. Leaves and other amendments can be applied in years prior to planting. Leaves doubled the amount of time required to harvest, and some leaf mulch remained adhered to tubers and required extra cleaning during grading. Below are examples of leaf mulch remaining on Blazer Russet (left) and King Harry (right). Managing mixed certified organic and conventional farming operations is time consuming. Equipment cleaning and recordkeeping took place before equipment used in conventional fields entered the organic fields. How did the yields of potatoes grown under leaf mulch (239 cwt. of Yukon Gold to 455 cwt. King Harry) compare to averages? Reported NJ yields range from cwt./a as shown in Table 4, typical of the lower yields from warmer production areas. Competitive NJ growers typically get cwt./a (Abe Bakker, NJ Potato Council, personal communication). Table 4. Average potato yields as reported by USDA NASS in 2014 for NJ and USA. Year and Average Potato Yields cwt./a NJ USA